Therapy Sessions
by ApollaCammi
Summary: Rick Castle. On a couch. Kate Beckett would pay to see that. Castle.Beckett.S3


A/N: This is a season three fic that borrows heavily from the promo, so if you haven't seen it I recommend not reading. Any conclusions I have drawn in the story are strictly my own.

Disclaimer: I do not own Castle. But oh, how I wish.

**Therapy Sessions (Or, Everyone Loves A Good Couch)**

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tiick.

Tiii-ck.

Was it just him, or did time actually slow down here? He watched the second hand on his watch tick around and yawned. He was exhausted, and the soporific ticking wasn't helping.

"Mr. Castle."

"Hmm?" Rick looked up. His gaze caught on her nameplate and he frowned. Her name was familiar – not in a way that said he'd slept with her, but in a way that he should definitely know who she was.

"It tends to help if you actually talk to me."

"I would, but… I don't even know why I'm here."

"Mr. Castle, you were arrested for murder by the detectives you'd spent the better part of a year shadowing."

"Wrongfully arrested." Rick corrected her.

"Wrongfully arrested." She agreed. "And now you want to start working with them again."

"Yes, we got everything straightened out." It wasn't their fault that Gina had given him a key to her place when they'd started dating, or that he'd kept it – and used it – the day after Gina called wanting to talk. Picking the gun off the floor, Rick had to admit, was kind of stupid, but he'd wanted to put it in a bag before he called Beckett. To preserve any fingerprints, you know. Looking back now, Rick realised that he should have closed the door once he saw the bust on the floor (oh, that stupid bust of Shakespeare that Gina had loved so much – Rick had refused to let it in the loft, and that was part of the reason she'd kept her old apartment; the beginning of the end, although Rick hadn't realised it at the time) and called Beckett right away. Gina would only have let that bust hit the floor over her dead body. The totally inappropriate thought surprised a laugh out of Rick.

"Is there something funny about that, Mr. Castle?"

"No. No, it was – something else." There had been nothing funny about being led into the precinct that time, hands cuffed behind his back, thrown into interrogation to cool his heels, and trying to decide whether to call Alexis, Mother or the Mayor with his one phone call. (He'd settled on Mother, because they'd been at a party to celebrate her starring role in a new Broadway musical the whole night, until he'd left the next morning to meet Gina, and she would probably be able to distract Alexis until he could get the whole thing sorted out. As long as no reporters had seen him, anyways.) "Oh!" Rick suddenly realised who she was. "Your mother wrote the play." He'd met her briefly at the party, but in all the commotion afterwards he'd completely forgotten. Had it really only been two weeks ago?

"Yes, she did. Don't you think there's going to be some awkwardness, going back to shadowing them after this?"

"No, they were just doing their jobs. Can I tell you a secret?" Rick leaned forward.

"Of course."

"I've always wanted to try out Beckett's cuffs. This wasn't quite the ideal situation, I grant you, but it wasn't that bad. The rest of it sucked, though."

"So there's not going to be any grudges or animosity if you go back to shadowing them?"

"Nope. Well…" Rick trailed off. "I'm taking Ryan's Christmas present back. He doesn't get the awesome one after he called me a scumbag." Rick grinned. "He'll have to settle for the cool one instead."

"Mr. Castle, please try to take this seriously. Captain Montgomery, the Police Chief and the Mayor are all concerned about you."

"This really isn't the most scarring thing that's every happened to me, you know. There was one time, when I was just finishing grade seven, I came home early – half day on report card day, you know – and found Mother entertaining her boyfriend." Rick shuddered theatrically. "At that age you still like to delude yourself into thinking you were dropped off on the doorstep by the stork, and it shifts your whole world view when you're confronted with evidence that you weren't."

"Mr. Castle, we aren't here to talk about your mother."

"We aren't? I thought all shrinks liked to blame everything on their patient's mothers."

"Only the incompetent ones, Mr. Castle." She grinned (rather mischievously, Rick thought). "We're here to talk about what kind of impact this _wrongful-_" here she smiled again, "-arrest might have on your continuing partnership with the New York Police Department, and ultimately whether a continued partnership is in the best interest of everyone involved."

"Oh, it definitely is." Rick hurried to reassure her. So it was a power play, here. They wanted to make sure Richard Castle wasn't about to say anything bad about the department. "If they breach our contract I am fully committed to launching a lawsuit against the city for wrongful arrest and wrongful termination."

"Wrongful termination? Mr. Castle, you are not an employee of the city."

"No, but our contract states that I'm allowed to shadow Detective Beckett and her team until such time as I feel I've collected enough research material or I am convicted of a felony. Neither of those has happened yet. Oh, and that in case of injury or death I, my lifeless remains, and my heirs cannot sue the city." He winked. Rick was pretty sure that Beckett didn't know about the first part of their deal, otherwise she would have tried to frame him for a felony every time he bothered her instead of twisting his ear.

"So." Her brow furrowed. "Let me get this straight. If the department tries to terminate your partnership, you're going to sue-"

"And take you for everything you've got. I'll end up owning the department. I have some very good lawyers." Rick interjected.

"-but if they allow you to continue shadowing Detective Beckett and her team, you won't take any action against the city?"

"I'll sing the department's praises for the rest of my life." Rick swore.

She made a few notes on her pad of paper.

"So, Doc?" Rick leaned forward again. "Do I pass?"

"Mr. Castle, _I_ think you're crazy." She smiled and ruefully shook her head. "But I'm recommending that they allow you to continue your partnership."

"Excellent!" Rick was out of his chair and to the door before she could say anything else. He paused, hand on the doorknob, and turned back to face her. "Why?"

"Because I'm a romantic, Mr. Castle." Her smile was softer this time. "She must be quite a woman."

"You met her. What do you think?" Rick's grin was quick. "Thanks, Doc."

* * *

"Well?" Beckett asked irritably as Rick slipped out the door. "What's the verdict?"

"Sorry Beckett, looks like you're stuck with me for a while. No psychological damage whatsoever."

"Was she sure?" Beckett frowned. "You look pretty damaged to me."

"Oh, ouch, you wounded my pride."

Beckett rolled her eyes. "Come here."

Rick warily moved closer to her. Beckett's hand shot out and she grabbed his ear, twisting hard.

"Ow! Apples, apples, apples!" Rick yelped.

"I can't believe you fell for that." Beckett laughed. "See? Damaged."

"Good to see you too, Beckett." Rick grumbled, sulking as he rubbed his ear. "So, what case are we working on?"


End file.
